Background: Obesity is a global health burden in the non-communicable diseases and much efforts have been implemented in the past decade in response to the rise of obesity prevalence among the Malaysian population. These include the development of the national policies, health programmes and research activities. The main aim of the scoping review was to identify obesity research pattern among adults in Malaysia in terms of the scopes, topics and the research designs. Methods: The scoping review was conducted based on the framework by Arksey and O’Malley. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta Analysis (PRISMA) diagram was used as a guide to record the review process. Articles from year 2008 until 2017 on overweight and obesity among adults aged 18 years and above were retrieved based on the keywords using electronic databases (Embase/Ovid, Pubmed, Cochrane library and Google Scholar). Local journals, Nutrition Research in Malaysia Biblography (2011 and 2016), online local theses databases, virtual library databases were also included in the searches. Consultations with relevant key informants from the National Institutes of Health and local universities were also conducted. Search activities were managed using Endnote software and MS Excelsheet. Results: The characteristics of the results were described based on the objectives of the review. A total of 2004 articles and reports were retrieved, and 188 articles related to obesity in Malaysia were included in the final review. Scopes and topics of obesity research based on the Nutrition Research Priorities in Malaysia (NRPM) for 11th Malaysia Plan were obesity prevalence, weight loss intervention, association of physical activities and dietary factors with obesity. The majority of obesity research among adults in Malaysia was cross sectional studies and only a small number of intervention studies, qualitative studies and systematic review were indentified. Research gaps were identified in order to make useful recommendations to the stakeholders. Conclusions: In the past decade, there has been an emerging evidence on obesity research among adults in Malaysia. More obesity research needs to be conducted particularly on obesity intervention among specific gender, qualitative studies, economic cost and genetic factors of obesity. Keyword: Scoping review, Obesity, Research pattern, Overweight, Adult, Malaysia.

Being overweight and obese during childhood increases the potential of becoming obese adults later in life. Therefore, this study aims to determine the factors associated with overweight (including obesity) among children under five years of age in Putrajaya, Malaysia. A total of 211 children with overweight cases were successfully recruited in this case-control study. The same number for control group which was normal children also being recruited by matching according to sex and age group with the case group. Data collection was performed by four approaches such as face-to-face interview, anthropometric measurements, finger prick for haemoglobin level and self-administered 3-day food diary. WHO Anthro software was used to determine the nutritional status of children. Descriptive statistic and logistic regression were performed to determine risk factors that contributed to overweight. Multiple logistic regressions showed overweight or obese father was 1.88 times more likely to have overweight children compared to normal BMI father. Mothers who had gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) were 2.93 times more likely to have overweight children compared to those with no complication during pregnancy. Pregnant women who attended antenatal visits for less than 9 times were 3.33 times more likely to have overweight children compared to pregnant women who attended 9 to 14 times of antenatal visits. Children with fewer siblings were 2.10 times more likely to be overweight compared to children with four or more siblings. These findings indicated related risks factors contributing to childhood overweight from the early stages including maternal and paternal factors. Early life intervention especially during pregnancy stages which include antenatal care and antenatal intervention on dietary and physical activity during peri-conception period is seen to be important to prevent adverse pregnancy outcomes and further improve maternal and child’s health. Hence it would be more effective to prevent childhood overweight or obesity in later age and its long-term consequences.

Background: Studies have shown that having away from home meals contributes to high sodium intake among young people and those who lived in urban areas. This study aimed to determine the association between dietary sodium intake, body mass index, and away from home meal consumption behaviour among Malaysian adults. Methods: MyCoSS was a cross-sectional household survey involving 1440 adults age 18 years and above. This study utilized stratified cluster sampling to obtain a nationally representative sample. Data was collected between October 2017 and March 2018. Socio-demographic information, dietary assessment using food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), and away from home meal consumption were assessed through a face-to-face interview by trained health personnel. Descriptive analysis and logistic regression were applied to identify the association of socioeconomic status and away from home meal consumption with dietary sodium intake. Results: A total of 1032 participants completed the FFQ, with a mean age of 48.8 + 15.6 years. Based on the FFQ, slightly over half of the participants (52.1%) had high sodium intake. Results showed that 43.6% of participants consumed at least one to two away from home meals per day, while 20.8% of them had their three main meals away from home. Participants aged less than 30 years old were the strongest predictor to consume more sodium (adjusted OR: 3.83; 95%CI: 2.23, 6.58) while those of Indian ethnicity had significantly lower sodium intake. Surprisingly, having three away from home meals per day was not associated with high dietary sodium intake, although a significant association (crude OR; 1.67, 95% CI: 1.19, 2.35) was found in the simple logistic regression. Obese participants were less likely to have high dietary sodium intake compared with the normal BMI participants in the final model. Conclusion: Over half of the participants consumed sodium more than the recommended daily intake, especially those who consumed three away from home meals. However, there was no significant association between high sodium intake and having three away from home meals per day. The promotion of healthy cooking methods among the public must continue to be emphasized to reduce the dietary sodium intake among Malaysian adults.